Columbia, USA - The top state prosecutor supports religious license plates that feature the words "I Believe" that are being challenged in federal court.
Attorney General Henry McMaster argued in a memo that the plates don't promote Christianity over other beliefs, just as "Parrot Head" plates don't promote Jimmy Buffett fans over fans of other singers, and the Boy Scout plate doesn't show legislative preference over Girl Scouts.
"The plate is instead an accommodation to Christians, just as the other plates are accommodations to Parrot Heads and fraternity and sorority members," McMaster wrote.
He noted that South Carolina's more than 100 specialty plates include one that states, "In Reason We Trust," which a secular humanist group sponsored.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State sued state officials last year after lawmakers passed a bill creating the plates, which also feature images of a stained-glass window and a cross. The group said South Carolina government is endorsing Christianity by approving the plates. A ruling is not expected until this fall.
Elizabeth Stevens, an attorney for Washington-based Americans United, said McMaster wrongfully lumps all specialty license plates together, though they can be made without lawmakers' approval. State law allows private groups to create specialty plates as long as they first collect either a $4,000 deposit or 400 prepaid orders, as was done for "In Reason We Trust."
"The Christian-only religious specialty plate is the only religious one the Legislature put its stamp of approval on," Stevens said.
South Carolina remains the only state to approve the "I Believe" plates, Stevens said. Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer has said the idea came from Florida, but the proposal failed there.
The plates have not been produced in South Carolina because of the lawsuit.